Follower for filing-cabinet drawers.



A. H. SCHAFFERT.

FOLLOWER FOB. FILING CABINET DRAWERS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.23, 1914.

1,120,548. P en ed Dec. 8, 1914.

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HF NORRIL PErERs Ca. PHOTUUYHnL WASHINGYO/L u v TED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

ADOLF H. SCI-IAFFERT, OF YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE PROOFINGCOMPANY, OF YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

FOLLOWER FOR FILING-CABINET DRAWERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 23, 1914. Serial No. 833,981.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ADoLF H. SCHAFFERT, acitizen of the United States, residing at Youngstown, in the county ofMahoning and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Followers for Filing-Cabinet Drawers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to the subject of drawer followers, and hasparticular reference to a novel construction thereof that is of specialutility in connection with card index or filing cabinet drawers. Manydevices of this character have been devised and are now in common use,but after a short time cannot be easily operated. because they do notstand up under ordinary service conditions. For instance, followershaving compressors commonly known as cam compressors, have proven to bemore or less unsatisfactory, because it has been found that in use themovable parts of the device readily become sprimg to such an extent thatthe cam will not lock securely. With a view to remedying the defects ofthis type of compressor, a cam was-used that bore directly on the guiderail. f This idea was also found to be unserviceable because the cam,being in direct contact with the guide rail, marred or cut the latterwhen locked tight thereon, so that the follower could not move freelyback and forth. This was especially true unless the guide rail and camwere of unusually tough or case hardened metal. That is, if the rod wasof softer metal than the cam, the latter would soon make deep cuts inthe rod which would hinder the shifting of the follower, or if the camwas made of softer metal than the rod, it would wear out in a short timeand render the device of no practical value. Attempts to remedy thisobjection either by adopting tough metal for both rod and cam, orsubjecting either or both to a special hardening operation proved to bemuch too expensive to continue. A further disadvantage of thecam type offollower was that it had no backward play to enable its successfulapplication to all types of filing systems. Another type of followerthat has been employed in practice is the well known spring compressorwherein a spring is carried by the body of the follower and has a freecompressible end and a rail or rod engaging end. In other words,thisarrangement in GENERAL FIRE-.

Patented Dec. 8, 1914.

eludes the follower back as a part of the compressor so that in order tomove the same along the rail, it is necessary to grasp both the followerback spring and compress them together. This is very disadvantageousespecially when the and free end of the i drawer is filled with files orcards. Under these circumstances, it is impossible to get a firm grip onthe follower back. Another objection to this type of follower is that itis impossible to maintain the back portion thereof at right angles tothe bottom of the drawer as is necessary in some filing systems, v I

The primary object of the present inventi on is to provide a novelconstruction of follower and follower clamping means which do not havethe objections incident to'many of the known types, particularly thoseabove described. That is to say, the present invention contemplates anovel follower device that is normally held upright in the drawer in aperpendicular position, or at right angles to the guide rail, thusadapting the same to true vertical filing systems which. prevail,particularly in the filing of cards, while at the same time there issuflicient play provided by tl e rail-engaging member to permit ofbackward tilting of the entire follower under hand pressure for thepurpose of removing cards or papers, or in those systems where the filepapers exert a pres= sure that would tend to tilt the follower.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide a simple and durabledevice of this character having but few and inexpensive parts, whoseparticular arrangement is such that they may be readily assembled tocon-1 stitute a follower back that is easily and quickly locked to theguide rail, and also readily and easily released from engagementtherewith so that it may be shifted longi tudinally along the railto'accommodate the i device forming the subject matter of the presentinvention in normal locked engagement with the guide rail; Fig, 2 is aview similar to Fig. 1 partly'in' section showing the follower tiltedrearwardly in-fulllines, and in its normal position in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is,,a rear elevation of the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2with a portion of the spring housing broken away-to show-thel0 clampingshoe in engagement with theguide v rail,to. hold the followerin itsnormal locked position. Fig; 4: is a" rear elevation partly in sectionshowing the clamping shoe disengagedfirom the guide rail so that theentire: followenmay be shifted,- and also showing in: dotted lines thepositions that the camYlever may-assume to lock the follower inengagement with ;the guide rail.

Inccarrying "out the present invention, the flexibility of the lookingor clam-ping means; permits. the use -'..of. either hard or soft metal;thereby -.eli1ninating 1 any I special expense attaching to aspecialpreparation of the metal to prevent the parts from wearing out-;quickly. as they do in the cam type-- of{ followercpreviously describechBy special reference to the construction I shown.inthe drawings, itwillbe observed that l the. follower device includes in 1 itsorwhich is freefrom projections I or like elements toIfu-rnish a fiat bearing for filesor cards,-'and:preferably coextensive with the width andrheight of thedrawer though I its .c dimensions may be readily varied to suit; allconditions i Thersaid follower back IV has secured to=its rear side' asubstantially inverted UL-shaped ispring housing member 2 a the arms orwalls of which; extend below the lowerwedge; of Fthellfollower back, asat- 3; and arecut away to forininturned retaining: hooks 4:, moreclearly shown in Figs- 3 :and 4 of the/drawings. These retaining hooks 4are. formedby a substantially T-shaped; slotbeing cuttin thelowerends 3of the housing. walls, thus enabling themto loosely I receivea channeledguide .rail 5; The upper edgesofrthe channeled .portion-of the guiderail" 5 are turned outwardly 1 to form holding .the spring 12:.tendstoeXert abinding force ganization a followenbackl, one side of flanges6, Whi0ha as best seen in Figs. 3- and upgn theclamping shoe 10, so thatthe lat ter unless restrained by the cam lever 11 is always normallyincontact withthe upper faces of the holding flanges 6.

lVith special reference to the cam lever 11, it will' be observed thatthe same is formed at itstlower, end with a cam head 13and at its upperportion with a finger piece 14, whileone-fa'ce or side. thereof has abearing contact with the rear side of the follower back 1. The cam head13;of&the lever11' is provided with apair offlat-locking faces 15 whichare at substantially right angles to eaclrother, and at their meetingpoints merge into the central cam-projection 16.

'80 Theabove described construction ofcam I controls the locking and:unlocking of; the

clamping portions of thefollower with the guide railjso that the formermay be freely shifted back -and-'fortln That is-to say, the g5particulararrangement of" clamping elements as shown -in thedrawings issuch that the holding flanges 6 are clamped aor-engaged on both theirupper-and lower faces, and in this connection it: wi1l be noted thatowing to the spaced {apartrelation -of=the retaining hooks .4 and thewidth of the clampingshoe 10, that the follower back 1- will' alw-ays bein aflperpendicular plane withrespect to-the guide rail when thepartsare in their clamp- 5 ingposition. r Figs. 1 ands?) show the-followerback-in its normalzclamped positions That-is,=when- "thespring l2isiexertingi its-clamping force:

upon the shoes 10 because the oan-r head 13 of the lever 11 has oneofthe: fiatlocking faces:15xin contactlwith the end wall 70 E theispring.;.housing.:2: 1 Thus, the 5 spring :12 is pushingedowni on =theclampi ngshoe 10- to bind;the..same.ion-thetop oftheholding-Nsfiangesfi'rof theagui-de rail, and atthe same time exerting :anunrestrained upward pressure-ion the lundersideuof the end wall 7' of Fthe r springahousing, thereby 1 pushing thesprings housing. 21 upward:and causing- -:the

retaining ll'OOkScb'LilO 1 grip on bind against the underside-.oftheholding flangesb.

' Fig. dzshowsthe follower device released from. looking. engagementwith the guide rai1-,:so that thesamekmay'mbe shifted thereon toaccommodate the contents I of the drawer. In otherwords, the spring; 12islshown un der compression, being restrained fromerrertingits-rclamping forcebecause of thever-- tical position, ofi the clampingwlever 11.v 12o- When thessaid; lever 11 is in the vertical position, thecentral :rounded point or ,cam projectipn; 1650f -thev cam .head 13 is:resting -upon .theuppenfaceof the ,end wall 7 of thehousing 2; thuslifting .theclamping 12." SllOfilOQfIOID;iblndlllg engagement with theguide, rail -5 so that a clearance is provided between the..clampingface of the 1sh'oeh10 and; the top =of. thev holding flanges :65- asclearly shown in thexdrawings. Because of 1130 the compression of thespring 12, and the clamping shoe 10 being withdrawn from the top of theholding flanges 6, the retaining hooks l become disengaged from theundersides of the holding flanges 6, thereby providing ample clearanceto enable the follower back to be readily shifted from one position toanother.

With further reference to the cam lever 11, it will be observed from theforegoing that when in its vertical position as shown in full lines inFig. i, all of the clamping parts of the follower are released fromengagement with the guide rail, and in order to bring the said clampingparts into lock-' ing' engagement with the rail as shown in Fig. 3, thesaid lever 11 may be shifted to either one side or the other by merely agentle pressure of the thumb or finger in either direction as shown bydotted lines in Fig. il. The rear face of the follower back 1 may beprovided with stop lugs 17 to engage with the shank of the cam leverwhen it is in either one of its locked positions and prevent the samefrom being pushed further than necessary to effect the locking of parts.

As pointed out in the preface of the specification, the flexibility ofthe clamping parts is one of the important features of the presentinvention, because this flexibility permits of a rearward tilting of thefollower back while the clamping shoe 10 and retaining hooks l are inclamped engagement with the holding flanges 6 of the guide rail. Thisfeature is fully illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, and in the latter figureparticularly, wherein the lower edge of the rear wall of the springhousing 2 acts as a fulcrum upon which the entire follower back may tiltunder a tilting pressure. Fig. 1 shows the normal position of thefollower back. That is, under tension of the spring 12 and the flatengagement of the clamping shoe 10 with the upper faces of the flangesof the guide rail, the follower back is held perpendicular or atrightangles to the rail, thus adapting the same to true vertical filingsystems which are used, especially in the filing of cards. However, atthe same time, it will be noted that there is sufficient play permittedbetween the flanges 6 of the rail and the retaining hooks i at thebottom corners of the spring housing or casing to permit of backwardtilting of the entire follower under hand pressure for the purpose ofremoving cards or papers, or in those systems where the file papersexert a pressure that would tend to tilt the follower.

From the foregoing description, it is believed that the many featuresand advantages of the invention will be readily apparent, and that thesame provides many novel and distinctive features which enable itsapplication to various filing systems.

I claim: a

1. A drawer follower including in combination with a guide member, afollower back shiftable along said guide member and having means fornormally holding the same perpendicular in engagement therewith, saidmeans being yieldable to permit the follower back to. tilt rearwardlywhile locked to the guide member.

2. A drawer follower including a flanged guide rail, a follower backshiftable thereon, spring pressed plunger clamping means carried by thefollower back for engaging said guide rail to hold the same in position,the plunger movement of said clamping means being operable in a planeparallel to the follower back, and means for actuating said clampingmeans.

3. A drawer follower including a flanged guide rail, a follower backshiftable on said rail, spring actuated means for holding the followerback in any positionon said guide rail, and a separate locking devicefor holding said spring actuated means either engaged or disengaged.

4. A drawer follower including a channeled guide rail having oppositelydisposed flanges, a follower back, means carried by said follower backfor engaging the underside of said flanges, and means for engaging thetop of said flanges including a spring pressed clamping shoe and a camlever for actuating said shoe.

A drawer follower including a chan neled guide rail having oppositelydisposed flanges, a follower back, means carried by said follower backfor engaging the underside of the rail flanges, and spring pressedcam-actuated means for engaging the opposite sides of the rail flanges.

6. A drawer follower including a channeled guide rail having oppositelydisposed flanges, a follower back having an abutment and means forengaging the underside of said rail flanges, a clamping shoe having aspring arranged between itself and said abutment on the follower back,and a cam lever pivotally connected with the clamping shoe and having abearing on said abutment.

7. A drawer follower including a channeled guide rail, a follower back,a spring housing carried by said follower back and provided with railengaging means, a clamping shoe carried by said spring housing, andshiftable means including a spring for causing the clamping shoe toengage with the guide rail and draw the rail engaging means of thespring housing into engagement with the guide rail.

8. A drawer follower including a channeled guide rail having oppositelydisposed flanges, a follower back having an abutment and also havingmeans for engaging the underside of the rail flanges, spring pressedclamping means also carried by the wall of: thehousing andolamping shoerefollower back for engaging the topv side of the rail flanges, and acam lever" pivotally connected to said' springpressed clamping means andhaving a bearingat its cam end on said abutment, said cam lever whenin aVertical. position. lifting the said clamping means to release theentire follower from engagement with. the rail, and when shifted toeither side of theivertical adapted to lock 1 the follower torthe rail.

91 Adrawer follower/including a channeled guide rail having oppositelydisposed flangesya follower back shiftable on'said guide rail, a. springhousing having opposite side. walls and a oonnectingiend wall, retaininghooksuformed'at the lowerlends of said siderwallsanrl adapted to engagewith the underside of the flanges of the guide rail, aclainpingshoehaving a guide rod projecting through theendwallof the spring housing, aspring surrounding said guidfe rod and having. its ends bearlngibeneaththe end speotively to clamp the latter against the upper faces ofthe'guide flanges,- and a shiftable-oanrlever pivotally connected tosaid guide rod andbearing against the upper face oftthe end wall of thecasing.

10. Adrawer follower including a guide rail, a follower back shiftab'lethereon,

plunger clamping means carried by the follower-back and including amemberiengaging one side of the guide rail and another member engagingthe opposite side ofthe guiderail, a spring element commonto both ofsaidmembers and arranged to place one under oompression 'and the other underten-l si'on, said olamping nieans being adapted to yield when rearwardpressure is applied to the follower back to permit the same to tilt.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my v Gepiu of this patent matte.obtained for, five centseaeh, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, I? 0.."

